Overview

When used with most power tools and shop vacuums, the Dust Right® Separator captures sawdust, wood chips, and other debris before it enters your vacuum, preventing the loss of suction power caused by a clogged vacuum filter. The five-caster base makes it exceptionally stable and easy to maneuver around the shop. Plus, hoses connect inside the in/out ports, preventing unintentional disconnections. The Dust Right® Separator creates a cyclonic air flow that causes most wood dust particles and other materials that are heavier than air to separate, preventing them from being passed to the vacuum. The vortex effect that is created prevents the loss of suction caused by prematurely clogged filters

Features:

10-gallon translucent bucket is easy to empty and easy to tell when it's full

Holds twice the capacity of competitors' products

Maximum performance can be expected when using the Dust Right® Separator in woodworking or general shop cleaning applications

Needed to reduce volume of off feed from thickness planer. However, the Dewalt thickness planer had too much force for the small separator to handle. Dust flew out of the lid and this separator was of no use to me. Ok for smaller jobs.

I had seen them for a long time. The price/performance ratio in my head finally met. I really did need to quit having to clean and purchase filters for my shop vac. It really seems to work as advertised.

Needed to reduce volume of off feed from thickness planer. However, the Dewalt thickness planer had too much force for the small separator to handle. Dust flew out of the lid and this separator was of no use to me. Ok for smaller jobs.

I had seen them for a long time. The price/performance ratio in my head finally met. I really did need to quit having to clean and purchase filters for my shop vac. It really seems to work as advertised.

I presently own a 12" planer, 6" joiner, Shop Smith, 14" band saw, 12" bench top drill press, plus several smaller hand held power tools, e.g. - sander, plate joiner, router. If I coupled the Dust Right Separator to let's say a 14/16 gallon shop vacuum, would this combination be adequate for most/all of the above mentioned machines ? Reason I ask is simply I own an older Delta m/n-50-179 dust collector, 580cfm which I,m not sure if it's still in production, and also it can be a real beast to have to empty( both barrel & bag) on occasion. Would greatly appreciate an answer, since casting off the Delta(runs fine-But) I could sure free up some space in my small garage shop. P.S. My 15year old shop vac needs to retire too. Thank You. Roger.

BEST ANSWER:I recently purchased the Dust Right Separator and connected it to a new 16 gallon vac with 7.25 Hp motor. I use with with a miter saw, small sander, router and band saw and other small electric hand tools. The system works well for me. You just need to keep an eye on how fast the separator is filling up. I have not had any problems but have learned not to let the separator fill much beyond about 1/2 before I empty it out. I really like my Dust Right Separator and wish I had purchased one earlier. Good luck with your system.

BEST ANSWER:I recently purchased the Dust Right Separator and connected it to a new 16 gallon vac with 7.25 Hp motor. I use with with a miter saw, small sander, router and band saw and other small electric hand tools. The system works well for me. You just need to keep an eye on how fast the separator is filling up. I have not had any problems but have learned not to let the separator fill much beyond about 1/2 before I empty it out. I really like my Dust Right Separator and wish I had purchased one earlier. Good luck with your system.

BEST ANSWER:The Dust Right Separator COMPLETE (pictured here as product # 45556) which is a blue drum with a hose and some clamps.

10 gallons. Of that, you get about 2/3 of that for waste - it needs some "header" to work well.

There is nothing in the kit that would allow you to directly connect a 4 inch hose to it. In my case, i bought a 4 inch to 2 1/4 inch adapter to connect my table saw to the dust separator, and the other end to a shop vac with a 2 1/4 inch input.

If your dust collection unit has a 4 inch input, this is not the separator product for you; as you would like be pulling from a 1 to 4 inch tool port (or piped system), constricting to 2 1/4 inches, and then covering back to 4 inches. Not a great idea. Too small a volume as well. The product 45556 is intended for "shop vacuums", as pictured in the instructions linked on this page, or the video. See the diagrams...

Product # 34367 which is also confusingly called "Rust Right"; this is not a complete, but "just the parts" to attach to a drum or 50 gallon (bigger is better) ROUND trash bucket with lid (or make one from plywood)

BEST ANSWER:The Dust Right Separator COMPLETE (pictured here as product # 45556) which is a blue drum with a hose and some clamps.

10 gallons. Of that, you get about 2/3 of that for waste - it needs some "header" to work well.

There is nothing in the kit that would allow you to directly connect a 4 inch hose to it. In my case, i bought a 4 inch to 2 1/4 inch adapter to connect my table saw to the dust separator, and the other end to a shop vac with a 2 1/4 inch input.

If your dust collection unit has a 4 inch input, this is not the separator product for you; as you would like be pulling from a 1 to 4 inch tool port (or piped system), constricting to 2 1/4 inches, and then covering back to 4 inches. Not a great idea. Too small a volume as well. The product 45556 is intended for "shop vacuums", as pictured in the instructions linked on this page, or the video. See the diagrams...

Product # 34367 which is also confusingly called "Rust Right"; this is not a complete, but "just the parts" to attach to a drum or 50 gallon (bigger is better) ROUND trash bucket with lid (or make one from plywood)

The ports are 2 1/2", but you can buy a conversion fitting to use it as first stage for your dust collection. This is really designed to be used with a shop vac, and it works great for that. For my system, I bought the "Rockler Dust Right® 4'' Dust Separator Components" for $21 and then bought a large metal trash can for another $20. I have to hold the lid on firmly by running a rope across the top of the can, but it works great and holds a lot of dust. If I had to do it over, I would use a clear lid or container so I could tell when to empty the can.

Reviews

Just got it a few days ago after the backorder wait, and it was worth the wait! Hooked it up to my Rigid Shop-Vac and was impressed that the suction and pickup lost no strength at all and the 2.25" hoses mated up perfectly. Wish I'd had something like this for the past years! Very satisfied customer! I would suggest that it have an available handle/extension so that the hose's nozzle can be more easily maneuvered for shop floor cleaning. I'll try some PVC pipe and clamps to implement that.Submitted on 4/18/2012 I take most of it back... now that I've been using it for a month or two. It tips over too easily, and when it does, the shop-vac nozzle usually ends up on the bottom side when it falls, sucking everything the separator collected right into the shop vac! The shop vac port should be in the center of the top, the base should be wider than the top and the wheels should be out-riggered a few inches beyond the base to prevent tipping! Finally, it needs a molded-in handle on the side of the container to make it easier to carry to your dumping spot or pour into your favorite waste container.

I believe the positive reviews here are by mostly inexperienced woodworkers who have given just a cursory test of the equipment. With just a few hours of operation using a 6.5 HP ShopVac and the Dust Right hooked to a Makita 2012nb planer, about 60% of the large wood chips were in the separator and the ShopVac filter was packed solid with fines. /p>

I had this dust separator for about a 6 months before I finally said enough. Out of the box it was pretty good - it went together quickly and easily and did a decent job for the price. I used it between with my 16 gallon shop-vac to both vacuum up the shop and collect dust from my 13" planer. The first time I used it with my planer I knew there would be issues - I had dust shooting out around the lid. I tried to open it and couldn't get the lid to turn. I had to use a 2x4 on the floor with the wheels on either side of the board, stand on the board, and slam the separator into it to take off the lid. The next issues with the lid where that the lock to keep it tight wore out - the lid never satisfactorily tightened itself to prevent dust from flying out underneath it. I used bungee cords from on side to another, but that didn't work well and was cumbersome. Overall, I would NOT suggest buying this.

I've only had this a week and tried it twice, but that was all it took for me. Between the cheaper grade of plastic that is obvious when you put it together and the poor performance, it just wasn't something I thought worth keeping. First time I've ever returned something to Rockler.

Had a little extra dough from Christmas so decided to give this one a try. Absolutely great decision. It made cleanup when planing and sawing far easier. Just work and keep an eye on the bucket. When I saw it getting full I just took it out of the garage and dumped it in the trash can. Assembly was pretty simple. Screw the ducting together through the lid. Attach the casters (use an old screw driver and a hammer to easily tap them into the base) Attach the top and bottom and you're ready to SUCK! :)

Had my Dust Right since November 2011. Just emptied the Dust Right from just below the full line and also checked my shop vac. Virtually no dust in the shop vac and only a slight cake on the filter. I have had no problems with tipping or durability. Some of the best money I have spent on my shop. Thank you, Rockler.

First I was surprised when the separator arrived in such a small box, but the two piece canister assembled quickly with little effort and the only tool need was a hammer to set the 5 casters. The assembled unit is approximately 17" in diameter and approximately 24" high. It came with a short expanding flexible hose (about 3') with 2 standard twist in fittings to connect it to your vacuum. If you are using a Shop Vac, as you may already know, the vacuum fitting is non-standard so you will have to remove that fitting and connect it to one end of the hose instead of the supplied fitting. After assembly just attach the vacuum hoses and go. Vacuum air is first pulled into the separator creating a swirling action depositing the debris into the separator's canister then the air, minus the debris, is pulled into the vacuum as usual. I was impressed as the separator seems to catch just about everything, saving costly filter replacement and keeping strong vacuum suction. It is small enough that it doesn't take up a lot of floor space, but holds a good quantity of debris. My only complaint is minor, which I will remedy, is there are no handles on the separator, making it more difficult to lift and also to hold when removing the lid, as the casters work great and it rolls easily. I bought my separator on sale for $50, which doesn't take long to repay in filter replacement and dust bags.

I wrote a previous review when I had tested the separator on planer chips and other coarser debris--which it did very well on. Yesterday I took the lid off to measure the inside diameter at the bottom so I could buy a piece of pre-cast concrete to use as a weight to help counter the top-heavy nature of the beast. When I opened it up, I was surprised to find about a quarter-inch of fine sanding dust!!!! I had been using an orbital sander for a good bit the previous few days after I had emptied it of the shavings. I was most pleasantly surprised that it also collected the fine sanding dust as well, something I was led to believe would not happen.

Received my Rockler Dust Right® Dust Separator last week and had my first chance to check it out Saturday. Opened my Shop Vac and cleaned the filter (purchased last month-fairly clean) and emptied the Vac on the floor, about 2/3 of a 5 Gal bucket of dust and chips. Did all the connections to get the seperator in line as per instructions. Started it up and vacuumed the pile up watching it swirl to the bottom, checking the vac I found it empty of dust or chips and the filter still clean. I was so impressed I dumped it again and went and got my fiance' and showed her the empty vac and had her clean it up again she said it was worth every penny I spent. THANK YOU for a fine product!

I paired this separator with a 10 gal. ShopVac with a new HEPA filter. It works very well for trapping nearly all of the course chips and sawdust. Very fine dust will get past it and make it to the filter. So, you will need to blow out the filter occasionally, but not nearly as often as before. The result is much better air flow with no fine dust exiting the vacuum, due to using a HEPA filter. Without the separator, this filter would clog very quickly. I initially thought that the hose that connects the separator to the vac was kind of cheap and would need to be replaced. But, it seems to be working OK. It rolls around easily when I have a long hose connected for vacuuming the floor. The issue of the casters not being secure in the base, as some reviewers have noted, is I suspect, the result of not fully seating them in the base. It does take a considerable amount of force to get the casters to seat flush to the base. But, once they're in, it also takes a considerable amount of force to remove them. They roll and swivel well, especially considering the price. Overall, it was a very good buy.

I received my package in a timely manner and I'm very pleased with how easy it was to assemble. Works great! Awesome addition to my workshop, I highly recommend to any work worker who desires a convenient way to manage dust.

I love the Dust Right Vortex. It works great and has saved me time from having to continuously empty my ShopVac. I have been planing a lot stock lately and this piece has been great in capturing 90% or better of dust and chips. Highly Recommended.

The Dust Right Vortex works exceptionally well. I used it for the first time to clean all the dust from the cabinet on my table saw. The Dust Right Vortex was filled to the line nice to be able see when it needs emptying w/o removing the top, but only a trace amount of fine dust was in the shop vac. I was impressed. Would have liked a more flexible hose, but that's no big deal really.

An excellent product. It does exactly what it says it will. I got a new shop vac and the Dust Right Vortex™ Dust Separator for Christmas and it works great. I have had to clean up my shop, plane boards, sand wood and alot of various projects. All in all I have had to empty the Vortex twice since i got it but have hardly any sawdust in my shop vac. Its great.

This is such a elegantly simple and effective addition to anyone's shop vacuum. It truly saves your filter from a lot of the dust that would normally clog the filter after 5 minutes of use. I use a Vortex filter for my vacuum, when using the Dust Right, I have 15-20 minuets of continued use actual use of sucking dust off the floor or connected to a machine. This increases suction and saves time on frustrating filter cleaning. The flexform hoses are perfect for this use as well as using it for many different jobs around the shop. If you are searching for the perfect Christmas gift for that special woodworker in your life, I highly recommend this, and by giving this gift you may finally get that jewelry box he said he would make you 3 years ago.

This is great dust control for those of us working in our garages or small shop. I use mine with my 16 gal. rig..d shop vac. with the dust bag in the vac. Wood dust on everything's a thing of the past. Great dust control for little money.

I am impressed with the way my dust separator works. I for once followed the directions and purchased a new filter for my Shop Vac. After several uses, I was showing my "system" to a friend and he was amazed with the collection of dust and debris in the collector and the filter looked unused.

Wow!it's better than advertised. As soon as I got it assembled I emptied my Shop Vac on the floor and vacuumed it using the Vortex. After cleaning up the mess using the Vortex the Shop Vac was empty except for a slight film of dust on the foam filter. Very impressive.

I bought a 16 gallon Shop-Vac a few months ago, and when I was down to my last bag I purchased the Vortex. I've filled and emptied it at least fifteen times and still have the same bag in the vac as when I first hooked up the Vortex. Amazing! It's already paid for itself just in bags I haven't had to buy. Would highly recommend it.

It works perfectly. The necessary regular cleaning of the filter on my old Craftsman 6hp/16 gal shop vac is an extremely dirty job. After installing the dust separator and then cleaning the work shop saws, tables and floor, ALL the mess was in the separator and NOTHING was in the vacuum or filter. Nice product !!!

Works as described. Kept a good seal with no air leaks which is a big deal. A larger 4" version would be great compared to the garbage can lid variety. Editor's note: For 4" size we recommend that you use our 4” dust separator components (#34367) to build your own container to maintain your duct collector’s effectiveness.

I use this in my basement shop with a standard shop vac. On the first cleanout, I was stunned at how effective this setup is. Was then not surprised to see a rave review in Fine Woodworking's Tools and Shops edition. I then changed to a Fein Turbo shop vac and now I'm REALLY happy. The Fein is pricey, but incredibly quiet AND effective. My sound level meter says I dropped from 102 dB to 72 dB. As my gearhead friends say, "This is the hot setup!" short of a real dust collection system I'd like to see a better cover release, but I can't deduct a star for that. It's just an outstandingly effective product.

I purchased the Dust Right Vortex about a month ago, this thing is amazing. The Vortex has been filled 3 times so far and there is only a film of dust in the shop vac. I would recommend this to anyone with a wood shop where there is no room for a dust collector.

I bought the Vortex several months ago and have used it quite a bit. It works great. Only the really fine dust gets to the filter in the shop vac. I have only cleaned my filter once since I started using the Vortex. I made a variation of the shop vac station from Plans Now so that my shop vac and the Vortex move together. I even used the wheels from the Vortex on the cart. The Vortex is a great product for someone on a tight budget with little shop space. I would recommend it.

Great product...was thinking of making my own, but what is your time worth? Besides, after buying fittings, container & what not I was aproaching Rockler's asking price. This is the best shop purchase I've made in a long time! Cleanup, & tool DC for 2 days w/out having to clean filter. I've read poor reveiws, & have to say that some people just don't have any common sense! If your filter is clogging due to fine particles, use a bag! That's the only way to catch fine micron dust, period. You have to empty it often because its hooked up to a plainer? No kidding? Ha... of course your going to lose a lil suction, same thing as adding 20' of hose to your vac. If your expecting the magical cure, you'll always be dissappointed. If your looking for a good small shop DC system . I highly recomend, works for me. Shop & lungs are much cleaner! Thanx again Rockler.

I live and buy almost exclusively based on the reviews when I'm researching a product yet I hardly ever go back and write a review. I wanted to do something for dust collection in my shop but due to the small amount of work I do out there I can't justify a true dust collector and my shop vac just couldn't keep up on its own. I was very skeptical of this product but after using it last night I am sold on it and plan to incorporate it into my workbench setup. Very pleased!

Had a serious filter clogging problem that was eliminated with the Dust Right Vortex. I highly recommend this product. I made my purchase during one of the free shipping periods and received my package in less than one week. Thanks

ok...I was very skeptical when I ordered this that something so simple would/COULD work as well as they advertised.....IT DOES!!!Guys and gals, this thing is AMAZING!!! It says it traps everything but the finest dust....I disagree...mine is trapping EVERYTHING!!! I LOVE IT!!! NO MORE CLEANING OUT THE SHOPVAC FILTER!!! And it's PORTABLE!!! THANK YOU Rockler for introducing me to a FABULOUS product!!!

Why didn't I do this sooner! I use a shop vac attached to the dust port of my chop saw. In this situation, the filter has to be cleaned out several times a day with heavy usage. Once I attached the Dust Right, I have not had to clean out the filter before the vac was full. The Dust Right has paid for itself in aggravation savings on its very first usage. Also: Rockler always stands behind their products! After ordering the Dust Right, I was busy at work for several months. Once I finally got around to assembly, and on my fault, I accidentally split the tub. Rockler replaced the tub for me free of charge, even though I offered to pay for it. Thank you, Rockler for the great service and for providing great products!

First test today, here's how. I used two shop vacs. I assembled the Dust Right and used it and one of the vacs VAC1. I cleaned the ribbed filter and vacuumed the contents of the tank. Then I used VAC1 to clean VAC2, a 25 gallon monster vac. Neither were full, but both were sufficiently dirty. VAC2 had been used for water recently and there was caked mess inside, but dry. After cleaning VAC2, I went back to VAC1 to see if anything had escaped the Dust Right. Yes, there was some drywall powder on the filter and on the walls of VAC1. But there was no debris, only some of the drywall chalk dust. Conclusion? Excellent job.

I saw a reveiw where a guy was having a problem with static. All I did was get some aluminum tape and a striped copper wire and a 2" washer. Tape the wire the full length down the side with enough wire hanging at the bottom to make a loop with the washer in it touching the floor. Make sure the washer is loose in the wire so it pivots on the floor but never not touches the floor. A perfect way to discharge the static. As for the tip over I glued a 5 lb flat round weight to the inside bottom, it's heavy enough to keep it upright but not to much when I dump it. This is a must have for any shop.

After going through one vac filter and the new one clogging almost immediately, I decided to buy the Dust Separator. It does a great job and will save my replacing filters so often. Wish the connector hose was a little longer as it "just" reaches the wall vac. Great product, easy set up, and works!

Like many others, shop space is limited and so is the funding department. I just purchased a 15" planer and the Dust Right Dust Separator at the same time. I was a bit skeptical as to whether the Dust Right system and my shop vacuum could handle the load from the planer. On initial start up, I was more then impressed with the ability to keep up with the high volume of chips. If there is any down fall to the dust collection system, it would be that the vacuum and dust collection tub do take up space but with the casters and a clean floor, they are easily moved. The 4" dust port on the planer down to the 2.1/4" fitting is no problem, plenty of pull. It's worth the minimal expense to have this in any shop as it saves time and more important, your lungs.

AN ADDITIONAL USAGE: My basement shop sometimes leaks rain water. Sometimes up to several inches deep. My wet/dry shop vac has a very small liquid capacity, requiring Many trips outside, to empty the small capacity. The Dust Separator, between my floor pickup tool, and my wet/dry shop vacuum, GREATLY expands my water pickup capacity from the floor of my shop. Almost NO water ever reaches my shop vacuum. It's all captured inside of the Dust Right Dust Separator. What a Bonus !!!

After moving into a new home I finally set up my wood shop in my extended garage. The one thing I didn’t want was sawdust all over the place. I installed my existing dust collection system but didn’t want the hassle of cleaning or changing the vacuum filter. I received the dust right dust separator as a gift for Christmas. After assembling which took about five minutes I installed it and haven’t looked back. The filter in my vacuum still looks new even after several projects and the garage is 95% dust free. This is a must for anyone who loves to work with wood and does not have a dedicated shop. Rockler also has available additional items that I’ve purchased for my router, band saw, and sander.

I was very concerned with the products price at first but with the easy assembly and great construction, this product is worth every penny. I have a very old shop vac that has a filter that can't the amount of dust produced from woodturning. Hooking the separator up to the shop vac was very easy and emptying the canister is very easy. Rockler has made another great product and it's cool to see the chips flying around inside the can. Almost no dust, even the really fine dust from sanding doesn't make it to the shop vac. There is no loss of suction and you hardly have to clean the filter any more.

At last, no need to clean the filter on my shopvac everytime I start another piece of equipment. This equipment not only holds more chips and dust than my shopvac, it keeps my hepa filter cleaner, longer. In my small shop 8'x18' dust piles up everywhere. Now most of it piles up in the Dust Right bin. Thank you for a great product and a great help in the shop.

Assembly instructions were clear and concise making the dust separator easy to assemble. I used the included hose to attach my 10G 4HP shopvac to the separator and my shopvac hose between the separator and a DeWalt planer. The separator was able to handle the output from the planer with no problem. The separator really saves the shopvac from having to deal with the sizable volume of larger material being created by the planer. Since the separator is translucent, I do not have to guess when it is full. The only issue I encountered was that my shopvac hose was not a tight fit into the separator inlet port. Not a problem, since Rockler instructions indicated this might be an issue and that some tape around the shopvac hose end would permit a snug fit. All that was required was a couple rounds of cheap 1 ½ inch wide masking tape around the shopvac hose end and the fit was perfect.The dust separator will pay for itself in no time by reducing the number of filters and bags required for the shopvac. Great addition to a small woodshop .

Small money well spent for a very small shop. Bought a few adapters and hooked the separator to a Craftsman Dust collector that I picked up when they were shutting down our local store. Works like a charm. The shop has never been cleaner. I'm thinking about plumbing in piping and waste gates but I think the 10x12 shop might start looking like a WWII German U-Boat.

I absolutely love this Separator but had some difficulty putting it together. Customer service was wonderful. The way I understood the directions was to put the bottom inside the top part then pull the top up until it clicked into place. After trying unsuccessfully several hours, I took the whole thing over to my daughter-in-law's house. She stood inside the bottom part while she, my 17 year old grandson, and myself all pulled on the top part. It still would not budge. The directions were not clear or correct I thought. I explained all of this to Customer Service and the lady there said she would send a new one and make sure it would go together before shipping. She sent me a new one with hand printed directions and pictures drawn on sticky notes. When the UPS driver got here and we told him what had happened, he waited while we opened the package, saw the sticky notes,then quickly put the top piece over top of the bottom and pushed down. It instantly hooked together. I felt about 2" tall. I called back the next day and offered to pay for the new one they had sent me, but they would not accept it. Rockler went up about 20 notches on a scale of 1 to 10. Thank you Rockler

This separator is the best thing since sliced bread. I have two of them and have found numerous uses for each other than in our wood shop. The savings on vacuum cleaner bags more than pays for the product. Our latest use is cleaning the brooder area where we raise quail. Each cleaning of the spilled feed and the used wood chip bedding will fill the separator over 8 times and we rarely have to replace the vacuum bags. Likewise, we use them for cleaning the machine shed and garage. The lid removes easily for dumping the contents. The unit is durable, assembles easily and is of excellent quality overall. We are very happy with the separator and highly recommend it to our friends.

Anyone who has a 2.25" shop vac and does not have one of these needs to give serious thought to getting one. Does a great job at picking up both chips from my jointer and planer, and dust from other tools. My shop vac filter and lungs are still saying "Thank you!"

Our price is lower than the manufacturer's "minimum advertised price." As a result, we cannot show you the price in catalog or the product page.

You have no obligation to purchase the product once you know the price. You can simply remove the item from your cart.

Our price is lower than the manufacturer's "minimum advertised price." As a result, we cannot show you the price in catalog or the product page.

You have no obligation to purchase the product once you know the price. You can simply remove the item from your cart.

What People are Saying:

I have been using Rockler for years, your products are always the best that can be purchased and your prices are very reasonable. Ann you have always done your best to make me feel as though I was your very best customer. Thank you for great service."

- Daniel F.

What People are Saying:

I have been using Rockler for years, your products are always the best that can be purchased and your prices are very reasonable. Ann you have always done your best to make me feel as though I was your very best customer. Thank you for great service."